Opinions
by CallMeLy
Summary: Another one-shot collection about Urushihara - more specifically how Maou and the gang see him, from an idea offered to me by MichaelisHearts on Wattpad. The people around Urushihara don't think much of him, and what they do think of him can't be good. At least, you'd think that, wouldn't you?
1. The General

**Disclaimer** \- I don't own The Devil is a Part Timer!/Hataraku Maou-sama! or any characters involved. Copyright to Satoshi Wagahara, White Fox and Funimation.

Welcome to my second one-shot collection~! This one will cover (my ideas for) the opinions each character in the main cast of the anime (not so much the books or manga, keep that in mind please~) has of Hanzo Urushihara, how they view him and their relationship with him~ As I've said, this will be much shorter than Heaven is a Place on Earth, but at least it's a nice side project while I'm doing Misfit Together. Each chapter's title will basically sum up who/what Urushihara is to the person it'll be about. I'll be trying to update this every Thursday/Friday (depending on when I can write) and Misfit Together will keep updating on Sundays

* * *

The General

He had to admit, he had once admired him.

Long ago, when the young Satan had first met the fallen angel Lucifer, he looked up to him. He was worth looking up to. His skills, his strategies, his way of looking at things and his entire demeanour. Lucifer knew what he wanted and he didn't care what he had to do to get it. He was strong and powerful. He was fearless. He was a _demon_.

It didn't matter to King Satan that this man came from Heaven. All that mattered was the fact that he joined the side of the demons. He was one of them, now. What was that phrases he had heard the humans use?

 _How the mighty have fallen._

Surely, there was no better match for such a thought than Lucifer? But it was a long time before King Satan learned what the humans had really meant when they uttered that phrase.

The young king grew into a great leader, a conqueror, with his generals at his command. Lucifer in particular was an asset to them; his understanding of the Heavenly realm was ever useful in their quest to take over the land of Ente Isla. And the hatred and disgust he held for his former brethren filled Satan with pride, with inspiration... with arrogance. He came to rely on General Lucifer without realizing it. He grew cocky. He never expected to fail. But Lucifer fell, once again, at the hands of the great Hero Emilia. But this fall wasn't like his first. He didn't simply leave. He was _gone_. Well and truly gone. Or so it seemed. And he hadn't even taken the time to look for his body. If only he had, maybe things would have worked out differently. But as it happened, the Great Demon General Lucifer was dead. Satan could do nothing about that, so what was the point in trying? His motionless body would be of no use to them, either. All the respect, all the admiration, all the sheer _awe_ he had once felt dissolved into nothingness.

He made a mistake in leaving Lucifer like that.

His unexpected return was a shock to say the least but Maou, as he now called himself, refused to back down. He felt betrayed, of course, but somewhere in the back of his mind, perhaps in the same place his new human perspective was coming from, he could also feel that glowing ember of respect reignite.

Lucifer had not changed one bit. He had turned on him, he had switched sides and was even trying to go back to Heaven. Even so, his strategies remained the same. His personality remained the same. And Maou found himself regretting ever abandoning him. But this train of thought was cut short as his body exploded in pain.

Lucifer had shot him. In his short moment of consciousness before he fell, Maou couldn't help but silently praise the fallen angel for taking such a chance without the briefest second of hesitation. He still knew just what he wanted, and he still took it.

He survived it, though. He regained his magic and fought. He beat Lucifer. And when he saw the way his wings snapped shut and his body shook, the way his eyes widened, the _tears_ that formed in them... A strange combination of disappointment and sympathy rose in his heart. Once again, he was losing his respect for someone he once saw as worthy. Yet there was compassion. There was a need to protect his old friend.

... Was this his fault? Over the next few days, Maou bore witness to the seamless transition of Lucifer into Hanzo Urushihara, the whiny, immature and spoiled teenaged shut-in. Somehow, he felt at fault. Could this... _weakness_ have infected him after he had been abandoned, forgotten and left for dead? He had grown dependent and childish. It was infuriating... and... Maou felt guilty. Urushihara seemed so much more vulnerable now. So much more defensive, like he needed to protect himself. Like he feared being hurt and tossed aside yet again. ( _How the mighty have fallen_... So _that's_ what the humans meant...!) Maou tried not to think about it.

Still, he did start to notice something. Urushihara hadn't lost his sense of initiative. He may be lazy and unhelpful around the apartment but he was still a hard-worker where it mattered - when Maou needed information, he never had to ask. Urushihara already had a webpage open. When Maou urgently needed magic, he was saved in an instant. Urushihara had formed the perfect plan, and got his revenge against Olba while he was at it.

He did fail occasionally, like that scam incident, but he had good intentions. He was trying to help.

If nothing else, at least Urushihara was loyal. Maou would always appreciate that.

... He just wished he could, like, maybe take the trash out once in a while or something. That wasn't too much to ask, right?


	2. The Nuisance

**Disclaimer** \- I don't own The Devil is a Part Timer!/Hataraku Maou-sama! or any characters involved. Copyright to Satoshi Wagahara, White Fox and Funimation.

Hello, lovelies~ Sorry I'm a bit late with this, I was really tired last night and lost all focus and motivation, I needed to sleep :/ But anyway, let's get to it! Misfit Together should still update as usual tomorrow

* * *

The Nuisance

He always did have mixed feelings towards Lucifer.

It was unheard of for a former angel, especially an _archangel_ , to be welcomed amongst the demons but nevertheless, General Alciel had to accept his king's decision. He was Satan's right-hand man, his most trusted servant, and he wasn't about to risk falling out of his favour by resisting. So he reluctantly allowed the newcomer into his domain, trying to suppress his disgust. It was hard to hide, though.

It went against everything he stood for, everything he believed in, to accept one he naturally viewed as his enemy, but soon he began to adapt. It was clear that Lucifer was no longer of Heaven, from his blackened wings to his cynical and menacing demeanour. He was certainly a _fallen_ angel, one who fully rejected his past life, but a _demon_...?

That took Alciel some time to recognise.

As time went on, Lucifer proved himself a true demon and a valuable asset to the demon army. His knowledge and understanding of the inner workings of Heaven and Ente Isla's church helped them plan strategies of attack, his hatred for his angel brethren made him ruthless, his skills and cunning drove them further forward. That was exactly the problem. Alciel could respect him, could respect his tactics, but this creature, this small, pathetic _angel_ , had made him wary. Who was to say no other angel could rise to such a level? He had always viewed the angels as lower beings. They were revered by the humans as pure and perfect, gentle and accepting. He had not expected to meet one like this who felt no sympathy or remorse for those he harmed and who could derive so much joy from causing so much destruction. Lucifer was tearing apart everything Alciel believed in.

And King Satan praised him. He saw him as worthy. As one of them. Alciel agreed out of loyalty to his king and master, but inside he was constantly fuming. The fallen angel, while serious and dedicated when planning, training and fighting, could be thoughtless, reckless and downright disrespectful at any other time. When relaxed, General Lucifer was arrogant and far too much of a burden on Alciel's mind.

Then it ended. The news came that Lucifer had been killed by the Hero and at first Alciel only saw the loss of a battle and the threat of defeat. But before long he was overtaken by a wave of regret, of sorrow and of true mourning. It was brief but he couldn't simply ignore it; he was saddened by what had happened. Lucifer had left his mark on Alciel, having shown him that he didn't know everything there was to know. His expectations could always be challenged. He had taught him an important lesson.

For a short time after that, Lucifer was gone from Alciel's mind. He was living a different life now as Shiro Ashiya and had no time to dwell on the past. He had a home to run and although he wished Maou wasn't quite so invested in this human-dominated world, he did find himself enjoying life here. The battles they fought were smaller and much less stressful. He had time to himself. Of course, _Yusa_ was an ongoing problem but her limited power was reassuring.

Then what seemed like just another day became a train wreck in Ashiya's life. Lucifer had survived, or otherwise somehow risen from the dead.

He was in shock. It was difficult to register what was going on at first and he got caught up in a meaningless argument with Maou. He dropped his guard.

Comatose, Ashiya could barely understand the situation he was in. All he knew was that Lucifer was back and he had betrayed them. The fear around him condensed into magical energy and soon he was able to close his wound and manifest his demonic form. But his mind was racing. How could Lucifer do this to them? Not only had he turned his back on them, his motivation was to _buy his way back into Heaven_?

He couldn't understand. Needing to recuperate and gather his thoughts, to try and make sense of things, he snuck away.

The cape was an excuse.

... Ok, it wasn't just an excuse, but really, he had to wear something respectable, how could he fight a battle in those human clothes?

He had been right to distrust Lucifer. If he won, he would surely take what he had learned of the demons back to his homeland. He was a threat. Even temporarily joining forces with the Hero was a better option than letting Lucifer get away with this.

He was angry. Rage drove him in that fight. He had come to respect Lucifer as his equal. He had accepted him as a fellow demon. He was only satisfied when he saw him, battered and bruised, drained of all magic before his king.

And then he had the nerve to becoming a leeching hermit in their home. Maou graciously welcomed him in with open arms, giving him a new name and taking the necessary precautions to keep him safe and protected, and he couldn't even pretend to be grateful? No matter how much Ashiya nagged at him he seemed completely incapable of expressing his thanks or taking responsibility for himself.

He was a child.

An entitled, self-absorbed, rude, ignorant, uncaring, shameless, _repulsive_ child.

... A... _demon_...

He always did have mixed feelings towards Urushihara.


	3. The Enemy

**Disclaimer** \- I don't own The Devil is a Part Timer!/Hataraku Maou-sama! or any characters involved. Copyright to Satoshi Wagahara, White Fox and Funimation.

I was gonna update last night but uh... that didn't happen :/ I was very tired. But hey, I'm updating now~ Um, I think this one's gonna be a bit shorter compared to Maou and Ashiya's...

* * *

The Enemy

Once upon a time, Emilia had actually felt pretty much indifferent towards Lucifer. She wasn't concerned with him anymore than she was with the other demons under King Satan's command. Her curiosity had been piqued briefly when she learned that he was a former archangel that had fallen from Heaven, but that didn't last long. He quickly became just another face amongst the grotesque hordes she fought against. A general, yes, but not worthy of any sort of special treatment. No, _that_ was saved for Satan himself.

One act changed that, though.

General Lucifer led an attack on her hometown, leaving nothing but burning flames and charred remains, of both buildings and bodies, in his wake. Lucifer and his troops were reckless, destroying everything and everyone they could get their hands on.

Emilia failed to save her home, and her father.

After that, the fire that had robbed her of her happiness continued to fuel the hatred burning in her heart with a cruel passion. It may have been the Demon King who made the demand to burn down the village, but General Lucifer carried it out. A traitor to his old home, he truly was a demon, inside and out. When she finally met him face to face in battle, she didn't hesitant once in aiming for the fatal blow. This was no longer only about her duty to the Church and her sworn oath as the Hero of Ente Isla, this was about personal revenge.

The agonizing pain was clear in his eyes as her sword delved deep into his chest. The sound of the blade piercing his body, straight through his heart, and his choked gasp brought her such intense satisfaction that she couldn't even begin to imagine what killing _Satan_ would feel like.

But there was no time to dwell on such things. She was fighting a war; she had obligations to attend to. She abandoned the demon general's body to be found by whoever may pass by and hurried further on towards the Devil's castle.

It was an empty win in the end, driving the Demon King and his last surviving general through a Gate rather than doing away with him like she had all the others. The only answer was to follow them and finish the job.

The life of Emi Yusa was quiet and simple for the most part, far less stressful than that of Emilia the Hero, but she still found herself in various scrapes and petty arguments. That is, until the day of the earthquake. Her suspicions had risen after being ambushed by some unknown magic user and receiving that strange phone call, but things were starting to spiral out of control.

She had killed him herself with her own hands, she had, she knew it, yet there he was. She felt her hatred bubbling again, even more than it did when she had to deal with Maou. Lucifer not only rose from the dead but came after her and the Devil, and that both terrified and infuriated her. And Olba part in this whole ordeal only drove her further over the edge. She was stunned, but soon Emi regained her composure and summoned her Better Half. This time, she couldn't let him come back.

The outcome was... less than ideal. Not only was that scumbag allowed to live, but Maou and Ashiya took him in. Despite betraying them, he was welcomed without question. Emi had to laugh to herself when she saw what distress their decision was putting them through. Still, her duty to keep the Devil under check and her desire to protect Chiho meant she had to put up with _Urushihara_ along with the other two demons.

Her basic instinct was always to lash out at him every time he spoke. He gave her little reason to physically harm him, especially considering he wasn't really doing much aside from making snide remarks and whining about being hungry, but threats and verbal attacks were always an option. Over time, he seemed to become more of an annoyance than a genuine threat and he fell lower on her radar. She learned to just put with him, and even to completely ignore him sometimes.

He _did_ save her and Chiho, if indirectly...

But she quickly took back any grateful feelings that were starting to form when Maou told her about the tracker.

He had his moments, sure, but he would always be a demon at heart.


	4. The Disaster

**Disclaimer** \- I don't own The Devil is a Part Timer!/Hataraku Maou-sama! or any characters involved. Copyright to Satoshi Wagahara, White Fox and Funimation.

Sorry this is a day late, I ended up super busy yesterday. Anyway, I have one more class left on Tuesday then it's just working on assignments at home. Not sure if I'll need to take a short hiatus from writing but it's possible so I'll keep you guys updated. Onto the next one-shot~!

* * *

The Disaster

He was terrifying at first.

Such a young, innocent-looking face. So unassuming. She had hardly even noticed he was standing there and walked right into him. But when he opened his mouth and started speaking, Chiho could tell something wasn't right about him.

When those wings sprung from his back, she was rooted to the ground with shock and fear, she had never seen anything like it. She couldn't believe any of it was real at that point. He didn't waste any time in knocking her out with a spell and hiding her away out of sight, where she couldn't see, hear, even _think_. She didn't have time to ask questions before she fell unconscious.

Eventually, Chiho was jostled awake to find herself in Miss Yusa's lap. She tried to figure out what was going on but it was all happening to fast. All she knew was that whoever the boy with the black wings was, he was a threat. And a powerful one, at that. She was stuck in a daze, staring up at the fight taking place above her.

Her image of him soon changed though, plummeting down almost instantly. Once he was subdued, looking up at them from the ground with his face swollen and bruised, he seemed harmless. And his conversation with the others was so casual, you wouldn't think they'd just been battling it out in the sky mere minutes ago. From what she could pick up, the boy was Lucifer, a fallen angel, and was clearly the lowest of the low. Stealing Miss Yusa's wallet was enough evidence of _that_ , as far as Chiho was concerned. He no longer seemed like someone worth being afraid of.

Still, she kept her distance, at least for a short while.

She was too embarrassed to say so, but Chiho actually _was_ still frightened of him, even when he was living the sad, simple life of Hanzo Urushihara. She struggled to come to terms with how Maou accepted him into his home so easily, even if he was a former general of his army. And all this talk about armies and demons and angels and other worlds was a little too much to take in all at once. She could believe it, of course, she had seen it for herself after all, but it was a wonder she never suddenly woke up and discovered that the whole thing had been a dream.

Despite everything, Chiho never questioned Maou's decision directly. She trusted him; she trusted that he knew what he was doing. She learned to accept Urushihara's constant presence in room 201 at Villa Rosa. Eventually, she realised it was starting to become strangely comforting to know he would always be there. Something else she didn't care to admit to. After some time, she was used to his lazy lifestyle, his technology addiction and his snark. She felt enough at ease around him now to make her own snide comments towards him. It could be entertaining sometimes.

Urushihara was an annoyance, a worthless leech, there was no doubt about that. Not as Chiho saw it, at least. She wasn't exactly happy that he was there, taking up space and getting in the way when she could be enjoying her time with Maou. But soon she began to notice little things about him. He didn't help out around the apartment, but he did help Maou with getting magic. He didn't show any signs of regretting the way he acted now, but he did show signs of regretting things in his past. He didn't seem very humble or respectful, but he did seem... insecure.

She never said anything, though. She didn't feel it was her place to, and anyway she couldn't really be sure about it without confronting him directly. And the thought of _that_ was enough to make her flinch.

He was a mess, in so many ways. Literally, for one. The area around his computer desk was always littered with empty bags, bottles and boxes and he wore the same clothes day in and day out. Figuratively, too. It seemed to Chiho that Urushihara had no direction in life, not since he came to Earth. He was clearly content to stay inside and waste all his time on junk food, video games and surfing the internet. And on top of that, if she was right, he had some kind of internal problem as well. Most likely multiple problems.

She still found it hard to forgive him.

But some things, she had to admit, made her feel just a bit more sympathetic towards him. He did plant those trackers on Miss Yusa and Miss Suzuno, but it was because of his quick thinking that Maou could get the magic to save them from Sariel. He did screw up and land his roommates in hot water with that scam ordeal, but he had only been trying to make up for spending so much of their money on those trackers.

And anyway... it was sort of because of him that she had even learned about magic in the first place.


	5. The Question

**Disclaimer** \- I don't own The Devil is a Part Timer!/Hataraku Maou-sama! or any characters involved. Copyright to Satoshi Wagahara, White Fox and Funimation.

Hello, my lovelies~! My hiatus is over and I'm back to fic writing! This one-shot collection probably won't be much longer, one more chapter next week. (Maybe two more...? Not likely though) I'll be updating Misfit Together by the end of the week, too. I have a very rough idea for another possible Devil fic to write eventually but I got into a new fandom a little while ago and I might try writing for that first so we'll see. Right. Ly's welcome back is over, time for some thoughts on the trashbird~

* * *

The Question

She had never met him in person, nor had she met any of the other demons for that matter, but she had heard the stories.

Lucifer had been a highly regarded and revered archangel of the Heavens. What could possibly have possessed him to make him give up such a life to join King Satan in his army? That was the first of Crestia Bell's questions. When she heard the news that the great angel had fallen, she was shocked, of course. But _then_ the rumours began to spread. Rumours that Lucifer was dangerous and could not be trusted, that he would do more harm than good. She rolled her eyes and scoffed at the whispers she overheard on the street and crossed another name of the list of heretics assigned to her.

 _What nonsense..._

As far as Crestia was concerned, there was no time to waste on such frivolous things, not when she had a job to do. One that didn't allow for distractions.

It wasn't long until she learned the truth. Lucifer really _had_ turned his back on Heaven and in the most despicable of ways, by becoming part of the demon army. And not just _a part_ of it, but a general. That brought another question to mind: what could the demons possibly want with a former archangel? She shook the thought from her head and lifted her hood, slipping out to complete her next assassination mission.

Her concerns about General Lucifer became few and far between. To her, he was virtually indistinguishable from any other beast in the Devil's hordes. He may have stood out in terms of his physical appearance, but there was nothing especially noteworthy about him that she needed to worry herself with. She had nothing to do with him. Crestia's time was occupied with tracking down the humans on her hit list, not battling demons. The Hero could handle that on her own.

Sometimes, while she was wandering through the village, Crestia would hear people gossiping about this and that. Every now and then, something about Lucifer would crop up amidst those conversations. It was common knowledge by now that not too long ago, he had been responsible for an attack on the town where the Hero had grown up, and that it was this attack that started her on her path. Now, a war was waging on between the demons and the Church. Crestia was never directly involved in the action but it was inevitable that she would pick up information here and there. Still, it never did occur to her that in all of these stories, not a single detail about the individual demons themselves came up.

She took the handkerchief from Father Meyer and wiped the blood from her face. She had been getting too distracted lately.

The news came that General Lucifer had been killed by the Hero. There was a small celebration held by the clerics of the Church. No-one noticed Father Meyer's absence, not even Crestia. They never suspected a thing. Time went on, others were defeated, their king fled, the Hero pursued him. That was it. The questions about Lucifer disappeared from her mind. For a while.

She was told to follow them. She went to find Emilia the Hero and help her, to offer her a chance to restore her honour and to see to it that King Satan was taken care of once and for all. She knew that the men in the apartment next door, Sadao Maou and Shiro Ashiya, were in fact the demons Satan and Alciel. She was prepared for that, it was the reason she had chosen to move there.

What she was not prepared for, however, was finding someone else living there with them. And she certainly was not prepared for that person being _Lucifer_.

She quickly picked up on how he somehow returned and joined with Father Meyer against the Devil and the Hero, and how he returned to Satan's side in the end.

 _Once a demon, always a demon, as they say._

But he wasn't quite what she had expected. Well, none of them were, to be quite honest, but especially Lucifer. Now, there was a new question in her mind. What was she supposed to think of him? Was he a threat? He didn't seem like it. Not one bit. He was downright pathetic. But he wasn't exactly easy to overlook either. He was unpredictable and that could be dangerous. But she couldn't say anything, not directly. She was 'Suzuno Kamazuki' to them. She had to keep up the image of an average, innocent, unassuming Japanese woman.

There was something interesting about him, in a way. Interesting, yet unnerving. She knew so little about him. She _understood_ so little about him. She wondered - was Hanzo Urushihara any different to Demon General Lucifer? And was Demon General Lucifer any different to Archangel Lucifer? How different? How had he adapted so easily to life on Earth? What was it about this world's culture that grabbed his attention? And was he really as arrogant and childish as he seemed, or was there something more to him?

She had so many questions.


	6. The Fallen

**Disclaimer** \- I don't own The Devil is a Part Timer!/Hataraku Maou-sama! or any characters involved. Copyright to Satoshi Wagahara, White Fox and Funimation.

Well, this is the last Opinions one-shot. I've enjoyed writing these and thanks again to MichaelisHearts for giving me the original idea~ ^^/ I managed to get some planning done on future Misfit Together chapters, btw, so that'll still be going for a few more weeks at the very least. Thanks for reading these one-shots, lovelies~! (Btw, I'm gonna mention the 'Olba abused Lucifer' headcanon. Not in too much detail, but still more than the last time I brought it up. Just a warning)

* * *

The Fallen

He wasn't worth much. He wasn't worth paying attention to. He wasn't worth thinking about. Not now. Not anymore. He had been, once, but he'd made too many mistakes since then. He'd never make it back to where he started, so why bother trying?

Heaven wasn't what the humans believed it to be. He learned that over years of pressure and restriction. Lucifer, the highest of the archangels, lived under the forceful expectations of his kind. To be worthy, to be perfect. Always. Forever. _Nothing less_. To be _less_ would be to fail. The smallest thing could tarnish his image. It became too much to bear. He didn't want to be this. He wanted to try being _less_. He wanted to do something wrong, he wanted to ruin his perfection. This feeling festered inside him for what seemed like an eternity before he finally burst.

He wanted _out_.

He found he loved destruction far more than anything he had ever experienced before. He finally felt in control of his life. _And he could take control of other's lives as well_. He was so sick of everything here, and he just wanted to end it and get out. If he fought, he could get out. If he fought, he could fall.

He got what he wanted. Heaven was in the past, far behind him. On Ente Isla, Lucifer was truly free for the first time. Then came Satan. He was sceptical of the young demon at first. Lucifer had known greatness once, and this weedy little goblin couldn't possibly achieve greatness. But soon he watched Satan grow into a real king. He was strangely proud of him for it. Somehow, Lucifer came to admire him. He had exceeded his expectations and there was something intriguing about him that made Lucifer curious to see where he could go.

At the same time, there was something discouraging about King Satan. Something intimidating. He became such a threat to Ente Isla, such a force to be reckoned with, that Lucifer began to feel overshadowed. Like he had been beaten. All he could think to do was to throw himself into his battles. To lose himself in the destruction he loved so much.

 _How could he be so stupid?_

He was disgusted with himself. He let his guard down for just a moment and the Hero struck a fatal - or near-fatal - blow. He was too arrogant. He didn't think he could be defeated. Especially not by a mere human.

He turned bitter and angry.

He awoke a day later, his wound nothing but a scar and his energy sapped. Olba Meyer stood over him, watching, waiting. Lucifer didn't meet his gaze. A mutual hatred and a reluctant partnership began. But Lucifer had become apathetic. He lost all motivation. If he refused to carry out an order, he'd be beaten. So he stopped fighting. Fighting only made things worse. He might as well let Olba treat him however he wanted. Even the offer of Heaven meant nothing to him. He only accepted in the hopes it would relieve the pain. He found that if he went along with whatever he said, Olba would relent. He agreed to work alongside him. If they succeeded, he could leave this place. He just wanted to leave.

Their eyes never met. Not once.

 _He needs me_ , Lucifer reminded himself, _he can't do a thing without me_.

If he was still needed by someone, he was still worth something. That's what he told himself, over and over again. If only he could believe it.

He tried. He did try. He had to prove he really was worth something, not just to Olba, but to the demons who had abandoned him on the battlefield. A wicked smile appeared on his lips as he watched them run. It was so satisfying to see the fear in their eyes and to feel it giving him strength. But it was so short-lived. His self-esteem plummeted even further than before in an instant. Satan, in all his former glory, was suddenly in front of him. There was nothing he could do now.

Drained of his magic, Urushihara felt more worthless than ever. His confidence dropped more and more with every remark and every insult fired at him. But, he supposed, he deserved it. He had taken too many wrong turns and he had done too much damage to truly be a victim in this situation. He knew that. Still, sometimes he couldn't help but think that maybe he'd been berated enough. He was _trying_. Really, he was. He was trying to make it up to them.

He did find comfort in this world, though. Maou and Ashiya may only see it as a meaningless distraction, but the internet gave Urushihara something he needed. Reassurance in knowing he had a skill that they didn't. Solace in the relationships he built with people who understood. An escape from his past mistakes.

He wondered if the others ever really thought of him. He wondered _what_ they thought of him. It couldn't be good. Surely not. In all honesty, he assumed they simply ignored him whenever they could.

They didn't appreciate him.

They didn't accept him.

They didn't respect him.

They didn't care about him.

They didn't want to know him.

Yet, despite these thoughts running through his head, he kept trying. It was pathetic, yes, but he still kept trying to be a part of them. And he still wanted to know.

What did they really think of him?


End file.
